Cancel Culture

Questions

What does it mean to be cancelled?

Who has been cancelled?

Why were they cancelled?

Cancel culture refers to the popular practice of withdrawing support for (canceling) public figures and companies after they have done or said something considered objectionable or offensive. Cancel culture is generally discussed as being performed on social media in the form of group shaming.

We are so easily entangled in Cancel Culture, because we look for others to accept us.

We offer no forgiveness of others past mistakes, while giving ourselves leeway in our own faults.

We are not defined by meeting the standard set by others, but by meeting the standard set by God.

We find that it is not our actions or our mistakes, but the actions of Jesus Christ that makes it possible to meet God’s standard.

We are to offer the same forgiveness that has been offered to us through Christ

Essential Doctrines

Sin as Missing the Mark

One aspect of sin is missing the mark of God’s standards set for humanity. This missing of the mark is not a simple mistake but a falling short of God’s glory through conscious choosing of sin. We miss the mark when we deliberately choose to cast aside God’s intention for us.

Guilt and Shame

Guilt refers to the objective status of someone being found guilty for a wrong committed as well as the incurring of punishment that comes with it (Matt. 5:21-22; Jas. 2:10). Shame is the emotional pain that comes from sinful actions. Scripture teaches that human beings are guilty in an objective sense and also feel the weight of shame in a subjective sense.

God Is Gracious

God’s nature is to delight in giving unmerited favor to those who are undeserving (Eph. 2:8-9). His grace toward sinners is found most clearly in the salvation He has provided through Christ. Because of sin, humanity is undeserving of salvation—all of us have turned our backs on God, and as a result, we deserve death (Rom. 6:23). However, instead of leaving people in their sins, God has demonstrated His graciousness by providing atonement and forgiveness for our sins through the death and resurrection of Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21).

Christ as Propitiation

Because of God’s righteousness and holiness, humanity’s sins must be atoned for in order for people to be reconciled to God. As the propitiation for sins, Christ’s death is the appeasement or satisfaction of God’s wrath against sin. Christ’s propitiation for our sins demonstrates both God’s great love toward sinners (1 John 4:10) as well as the necessary payment that results from the penalty of sins (Rom. 3:26).

Repentance

Repentance is a response to God’s gracious call to salvation. It includes a genuine sorrow for one’s sin (Luke 5:1-11), a turning away from one’s sin toward Christ (Acts 26:15-20), and a life that reflects lasting change and transformation (Ps. 119:57-60).